


Morning Glory

by obsessivemuch



Category: Power Rangers Dino Thunder
Genre: F/M, Friendship, Late Night Conversations, Subtext, Wonderwall universe, collaborative
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2004-07-14
Updated: 2004-07-14
Packaged: 2017-10-28 15:35:32
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,242
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/309383
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/obsessivemuch/pseuds/obsessivemuch
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"Simple is good." Kira once told Conner that she wanted simple, but the White Dino Gem had other plans. A midnight discussion complicates matters even more. Set in NeoVenus22's Wonderwall universe.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Morning Glory

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Wonderwall](https://archiveofourown.org/works/47594) by [NeoVenus22](https://archiveofourown.org/users/NeoVenus22/pseuds/NeoVenus22). 



> Timeline: Set between "The Missing Bone" and "Bully for Ethan"
> 
> Universe: Wonderwall by NeoVenus22 – if you haven't read that story, events in this one may not make any sense at all.
> 
> Dedication: First to the brilliant NeoVenus22 who created the Wonderwall universe and let me play in it for this story.
> 
> Artwork: NeoVenus22's contribution

After an hour of staring at his Pele poster, Conner finally quit trying to sleep and rose from his bed. He slipped his favorite soccer shorts over his boxers and grabbed a red flannel shirt to pull over his wifebeater. Two minutes later, he eased out of his driveway as his Mustang engine purred quietly. The vehicle headed toward the lake where Conner often sought peace during a bout of insomnia. At night, the lake seemed even more magnificent, eternal and vast, full of power and chaos.

Still as he strode toward the private spot, he realized that someone else was occupying his favorite boulder, someone who looked remarkably like one of his best friends. She wore the same outfit from the last time he had seen her, and he briefly wondered if she had even gone home. "Hey, Kira," he said as he jogged up to the spot.

"Conner, what are you doing here?" she asked with surprise.

"Couldn't sleep. What about you?" He settled on a nearby boulder.

"Is it really that late?" When he nodded, she shrugged. "I'm just trying to work some stuff out."

"Anything I can help with?"

"No!" she said harshly. In a softened tone, she added, "Sorry, I think it's something I'm going to have to work out on my own."

"Okay," Conner said, making her feel guiltier with his easy acceptance. He stared out at the rippling lake.

"Why can't you sleep?"

Conner paused for such a long moment that Kira wondered if he had even heard the question. "I don't always sleep well after tough battles."

His answer sounded too carefully worded to Kira, but she disregarded the thought to focus on his actual words. "It didn't seem that tough," she murmured with a frown. "We beat the monster pretty easy actually – we didn't even have to use the auxiliary Zords."

"That wasn't the tough battle I was referring to," he said simply.

Kira's mind went back even further to the events before the monster showed. "Oh." There was a wealth of meaning in the soft syllable. After all, those events were a part of why she was sitting on a boulder in the park at midnight.

"It's hard to watch you and Ethan get hurt when we're fighting. That's why I can't sleep – I spend the time replaying the fight and trying to figure out what I could do differently to save you. What kind of leader can't protect his team?"

She released a breath she hadn't realized she was holding and laughed affectionately. "You can't protect us completely, Conner. It's an unrealistic goal." Kira touched his arm, waiting for his eyes to meet her own stubborn hazel ones. "But what you can do is exactly what you've been doing, fighting with all your passion and inspiration, growing as a Ranger, and being there when the battle is finally over. That's what being a true leader is all about," she said with a wisdom that seemed beyond her years.

His smile didn't quite reach his eyes, and the moonlight seemed to emphasize the shadows. "I know, Kira, but it doesn't stop me from remembering how long it took to get through those Tyrannodrones to get to you. I was scared that Trent would hurt you," he confessed.

Recognizing the warning sign of crossing a self-imposed line, she turned the topic back to him. "I never knew you felt insecure about your leadership skills, Conner. You do a pretty good job of hiding it under arrogance pretending to be confidence. I don't know, it just seems so human," she murmured, trying to lighten the moment.

Lost in his remembrance of the evening, Conner missed the flippant jab, responding only to the first part of the comment. "Well, a leader shouldn't seem like he can't handle the job."

"Why not?" she inquired, startled by the remark. "We all have moments of doubt. Did you think it would make us feel differently about you?"

"Wouldn't it? You and Ethan have both questioned my leadership before," he accused, pinning her with a fierce look.

"Maybe in the beginning," she said calmly. "Ethan wouldn't want me to tell you this because he thinks your head is big enough already, but you've grown so much in the last few months, Conner. There are times when I hardly recognize that self-centered jerk who called me babe."

"Really?" Conner brightened visibly with a arrogant smirk on his handsome face.

"Then again, sometimes he's all I see." With an exasperated sigh, she continued, "My point was that we're a lot more comfortable with your leadership now. If we weren't . . . well, Ethan and I aren't exactly quiet people."

"That's true. Normally, you never shut up."

Kira glared at him with daggers in her eyes. "Excuse me? I'm not the one who talks just to hear himself speak."

He started to laugh, a raucous noise full of pleasure and affection. "Don't ever change, Kira," he wheezed through the laughter.

The blonde finally cracked a grin. "Only if you'll stop wallowing in self- pity – it's creeping me out."

"Deal," Conner agreed, touching Kira's arm lightly.

When she shivered, she was uncertain about the source, whether it was the cold bite of the wind or the gentle spark that ran between his fingers and her bare skin. She pulled away and wrapped both arms around her knees. "It's starting to get cold again."

Wordlessly, her best friend shrugged out of his flannel shirt and draped the red fabric around her shoulders. Not so long ago, she would have rejected the gesture, but it was before she saw the real Conner McKnight, the one who laid his heart bare at a high school dance. "Finals are just around the corner."

"At least we'll definitely pass science," Kira answered with a smile, but it faded as she changed the subject abruptly, slightly more secure with the shelved discussion. "Conner, what I said earlier about working it out on my own - I'm not sure that it's exactly true, and I do want to talk to you . . ."

"Whatever it is, I want to help."

"But you don't handle certain things well at all," Kira finished.

"Oh, it's about Trent then." His voice was tightly controlled, the way it usually sounded when anyone brought up the White Ranger these days.

"Of course it is," she said almost impatiently. She figured that the honest truth was the only way to talk to him about Trent. "But only if you can avoid being angry, Conner."

"Can you really expect me to make a promise like that?" The mutinous tilt of her chin was the only answer he received, and he sighed crossly. "Okay, I'll do my best."

Kira gazed at him with serene eyes before she finally nodded. "I'm sure you'll try anyway. Why didn't you ask me what Trent said after it was all over? Ethan and Dr. O both asked."

"Because whatever he said hurt you deeply – we could all see that, but it wasn't all that different from the other times he's said something devastating to you. And because I'd have tracked him down to destroy him in a heartbeat whether you wanted me to or not. I already hate him, Kira. I don't need more ammunition." Conner delivered his answer with his usual bluntness, tact being a foreign concept to most teenagers.

Kira did not know if she should laugh or cry. "You're wrong," she finally said, swallowing her mixed emotions and glancing at her perplexed friend. "It was different this time."

"What do you mean?" When he demanded the information, Kira heard the rising note of concern. "What did he say?"

Turning her head back to the lake, Kira's tone was surprisingly placid. "Oh, he didn't really say anything new. It was the usual threats to annihilate us – to destroy you and Ethan right in front of me." Her voice barely trembled as she related that new tidbit to Conner. "But it was the first time he didn't acknowledge me as Kira. He kept calling me Yellow Ranger, and he completely ignored my attempts to reach him as Trent."

As much as he despised Trent, cursed him for the way he seemed bent on tearing apart the girl of his dreams, Conner was helpless in the wake of Kira's heartache. "If what you say about the Dino Gem is true, he's not really Trent anymore."

"He's so distant. Has he forgotten me, us already?" Kira mused.

Conner's instant reply was an emphatic disagreement. "No, definitely not, Kira. He spends too much time plotting our destruction to forget us completely."

Shuddering at the memory of Trent's empty eyes, Kira pulled the flannel shirt around her shoulders a little tighter. "What if Dr. O is wrong? What if believing in his goodness isn't enough?"

"I don't know, Kira. If he goes much further, someone is going to wind up seriously hurt, you, Ethan, me, an innocent civilian. After that . . . if it was me, I think I'd rather be dead than saved. Brooding over guilt isn't really my style."

She chuckled, startling the teen. "This from the guy who just said he couldn't sleep after battles where we've been hurt?"

"All right, brooding over deserved guilt then," he fired back with an annoyed tone.

Her laughter faded as she tensely looked away from him. "Do you really think he deserves to feel guilty even if the Dino Gem is controlling him?"

"Dr. O would probably say no, but he still seems to feel guilty over his time as an evil Ranger."

"I didn't ask about Dr. O. I asked what you thought, Conner." It was her turn to sound annoyed at his deliberate avoidance of her question.

"You shouldn't ask me. The others would be better."

"I know what the others say. Dr. O says I need to be patient, Hayley thinks he's under the Dino Gem's evil control, and Ethan can't seem to decide if he thinks Trent is guilty or not. But I don't know what you think, and that's just as important to me."

"Fine, I think he should feel guilty about it all because he's using the Dino Gem as an excuse to be evil without consequences."

"What?" Kira gaped at him with a shocked expression.

"You don't find it convenient that Trent just gave in after someone, probably Mesogog, told him that the Gem was evil, that he didn't try harder to fight the influence, that he completely rejected our help? Face it, Kira, he didn't make the effort when he had the chance, and he's just been worse with every battle," Conner said roughly. "If he comes through this thing alive, he deserves every bit of guilt. And he's not going to be the same guy you were nearly dating either – you need to remember that."

Kira tried to shake the feeling that he was making sense. "I guess next you'll be telling me that it's his fault he's evil."

"If the shoe fits. Look, even Dr. O doesn't know that much about the Dino Gems," he said, indicating the silver bracelet on his wrist. "But one of the first things he ever said is that the Gem picks the person and bonds with their DNA. Now think about the fact that an evil, unstable Gem chose him to hold the White Ranger power. What was so attractive about him that he would be chosen by the evil Gem?"

"Everyone has the potential to be evil, Conner, even me," Kira answered softly.

He flinched, remembering the coldness of her eyes and the disgust in her voice when she spoke to them. "It's different," he insisted. "Those stupid lizards forced you to hold still long enough for that monster to work his mojo. And you came and destroyed him the instant you were back to yourself. Trent doesn't do anything unless it helps himself."

"It's not that simple, Conner," she replied even though she knew she was talking to a brick wall.

"No, it's not that simple," Conner repeated, standing to pace in front of the boulders. "But simple is good, right? That's the whole reason you chose Trent because you thought it would be simpler to date a busboy than give me a chance. This whole mess isn't simple anymore, Kira, it's downright complicated."

Closing her eyes, she counted to ten before she looked around at the familiar comforting copse of trees. Conner had respected her wishes and never discussed the understanding from their last conversation here until now. "You're right – it's not that simple, but there's a chance that there's still a part of him that's good, that he might fight on our side."

"Quit being so naïve," Conner scoffed bitterly. "And if he does come back to our side, what then? Do we welcome him back with open arms and forget about the damage he's done? Are you going to date him even though you know he isn't trustworthy and he's tried to kill you several times?"

At that moment, Kira hated him more than she had ever hated Trent. She hated him for the smugness boiling under his bitterness, but most of all, she hated him for voicing all the thoughts she only let himself think at night. "I don't care that it's complicated, and I don't know what will happen, but it's Trent's life on the line – that's what I know and care about, Conner!" she said, standing in front of his path so he had to pause. "Isn't that why we became Rangers? To protect others?"

"Innocents, Kira, and Trent doesn't fall into that category anymore no matter what you might wish," the teen jeered.

Desperate to silence him before he damaged her conflicting feelings about Trent further and feeling the magnetic attraction of his righteous anger, she resorted to her last line of defense. It started as a harsh kiss, full of anger, sorrow, confusion, and it surprised Conner enough that it took him a few seconds to respond. Yet he returned it hungrily, consuming passion seeking the same from her willing lips. In the back of her mind, Kira willed herself to feel a betrayal of Trent, a sense of wrongness, but all she felt was a feeling of general rightness so she abandoned herself to the whirl of passion.

A minute later, Conner pulled away and wondered roughly, "What was that?"

In her right mind, Kira would have spoken sarcastically, but she shrugged, still dazed. "I don't know."

He stared at her for a long moment before he laughed cruelly. "You really don't know, do you?"

"So little of what does happen between us makes any kind of sense, Conner, that I don't know why you would expect this to," she retorted.

"Because it does make sense. Loverboy rejected you so you came running to me for comfort." Irritated, he ran his hand through his hair.

"That wasn't it at all," she denied, a small part of her questioning the validity of her protest.

"For someone who likes simple, you sure like to make life complicated," he said, turning away from her. Kira looked so small and vulnerable, clutching the oversized shirt around her shoulders. His anger fled quickly even as he wondered about the confusion of the moment. His voice was quietly sad when he spoke again. "It's not fair, Kira."

Already feeling the burden of guilt, his words did little to relieve her unease. "You're right – it wasn't fair to you, Conner. I'm sorry."

He swung around and gazed at her with intense brown eyes. "It's not fair to anyone involved in this mess, Kira, not just me. Yeah, you shouldn't have kissed me because you know how I feel about you. I don't want you to kiss me because you're confused and hurt about Trent – I want it to happen because you want to kiss me. But it's not fair to you either. You're already dealing with your feelings about Trent, and I don't think you need to mix me up with that mess. It's complicated enough." Conner hesitated before he said his next words. "And it's not fair to Trent either."

"Trent?" Kira never expected him to cite Trent even after he had mentioned the unfairness to her.

Her best friend shifted uncomfortably. "On the off chance that you're right and Trent comes back to our side, he'll have no idea that anything has ever happened between you and me because there's no reason for him to know, right?"

Kira yearned to respond to the hopeful note, but she was still rational enough to know that his words were true. "Right," she answered, trying to sound as if she believed completely.

"And you guys will pick up right where you left off with the flirting and almost-dates." His voice trailed off into silence.

Suppressing the desire to kiss away his heartbroken expression, Kira stared helplessly at the lake. "I don't know what's gonna happen, Conner, but I don't think there's any way to pretend that nothing happened so I doubt we'll be flirting right off the bat."

"Good." He looked relieved by her answer. "Because I don't think I could handle it, Kira."

"I didn't kiss you because Trent rejected me," she said abruptly. "I wanted to kiss you."

Conner gave her his best cocky, heart-melting grin. "Girls always do. Most show a little more self-control though."

Rolling her eyes, Kira couldn't help the giggle that escaped. They were reverting back to the banter of friendship, a situation she was far more comfortable with. "You wish. When was the last time you actually went on a date, Conner, a real date with a pretty girl who smells nice?"

"The whole superhero saving the world gets in the way of having a social life, Kira – you know that just as much as I do," he snapped sarcastically. "Because it would be so easy to explain my absence from dinner during a monster attack."

Kira's eyes widened with astonishment. Conner was way too defensive for a teasing question especially for a boy who bragged that he could charm girls into anything. "I was just joking, Conner."

With a heavy sigh, he forced himself to relax. "I know. It's just that saving the world seems a little more important than finding a date to the next dance. Do you want a ride home?"

"What?"

"It's almost two, and we have school tomorrow," he said with obvious condescension.

"I'm just not ready to go home yet," she admitted. "Especially since I probably wouldn't be able to sleep anyway."

"Okay." Conner selected a patch of grass, forsaking the boulder for the comfort of grass.

"You don't have to stay. I can take care of myself," Kira said with a puzzled tone.

"I'm perfectly aware of that." Unconsciously, he rubbed a spot where she had landed an effective blow during a training session. "But I'd rather hang out with you than Pele tonight."

"I guess I should be honored." She slipped her arms into the long sleeves of Conner's shirt and joined Conner on the grass. "Did you start working on that project for history?"

"I've done some research." The conversation continued quietly, sticking to neutral topics, school, Kira's music, Conner's next soccer match, Ethan. Eventually, Kira's head drooped drowsily against his shoulder. Uncertain about waking her, he watched the blonde as she slept peacefully.

When Kira woke a few hours later, she found herself listening to deep rumbles and a steady thumping of a heartbeat. Lifting her head slightly, she learned that Conner's chest was the source of unfamiliar noise. He seemed to be sleeping fine, one arm flung haphazardly across the grass while the other curled loosely around her waist. "Oh," she murmured, sucking in a sharp breath. As the night's events start to repeat in her head, a steady beep erupted from Conner's bracelet.

"Yeah, I'm up," he mumbled, searching for a nonexistent alarm clock but encountering a bundle of girl instead. "Ahh!"

"It's just me, Conner," Kira said, taking advantage of his confusion to disentangle her body from his limbs.

"Oh yeah," he muttered, sitting in an upright position and glancing everywhere but his best friend.

"Your Dino Gem is beeping," she noted, suddenly feeling slightly shy.

"This is Conner."

"Hey man, where are you? Your mom is freaked because your car was gone, and she called my house at the crack of dawn."

"I bet. What did you tell her, E?"

"You owe me. I covered, said you forgot about a paper due today and came over to work on it. But Dr. O knows you're missing since you didn't show up for this morning's training session."

"Thanks, dude. I guess I just lost track of time and I totally forgot about the meeting today."

"Have you heard from Kira today at all? I can't reach her either, and her mom's out of town."

"Yeah, I talked to her a few minutes ago. I'll swing by her house and pick her up for school."

"You should get going then because first period is going to start in fifteen minutes," Ethan said before he ended the transmission.

Kira was on her feet instantly. "It can't be that late. There's no time to go home."

"It's only going to take a few minutes to get to school," Conner argued, brushing the grass from his clothing.

"I'm not going to have a chance to change."

"You look fine, Kira." An uncomfortable moment resulted when she picked grass from his hair. As she pulled away, he grabbed her hand and squeezed it appreciatively. "Thanks."

"No problem," she said, feeling awkward. "We should go."

The car ride was disquietedly silent, an unusual occurrence for both parties. At school, Conner reached into his gym bag and pulled out his rumpled soccer jersey to wear over his wifebeater. Ethan met them at the school entrance, bubbling over with conversation. "There you guys are. Dr. O's gonna be mad if we're late."

"He's not mad about this morning, right?" Kira asked in a desperate attempt to sound normal. She failed and Conner caught the weird inflection, glancing at her with concern.

Unaware of the undertone, Ethan prattled about the meeting. "Nah, he figured you guys were just exhausted by the battle yesterday. He was sort of worried about you, Kira, when he realized your mom was on a business trip."

"I'm fine," she said as they reached the doorway to the classroom where their teacher hovered. "Hi, Dr. O."

"Glad you three decided to join us," their mentor stated, relief plain in his dark eyes.

The trio sat down at their usual table, Conner and Ethan forming a guard around Kira to prevent Trent from sitting next to her. Kira still offered a hopeful smile toward the White Ranger who ignored the gesture and continued drawing the destruction of the Power Rangers. Somehow, the rejection didn't hurt the way it usually did as she felt a reassuring touch on her arm from the soccer player.

Everything might have fallen back into normalcy if only Cassidy had ignored Kira's attire. "Really, Kira, day-old clothes and red flannel. That's so passé."

"But Cass, retro is in right now. You told me that yesterday," Devin contradicted, missing the twin expressions of horror on Conner and Kira.

"Shut up, Devin!" the blonde hissed.

"All right, everyone, settle down," Tommy said. "The Mesozoic era . . ."

At the Rangers' table, Cassidy's words affected the whole group. Conner's shirt felt heavy on Kira's shoulders, and she studied the blank page in front of her with deep concentration. Taking his cue from her, Conner busied himself with copying the lecture down, word for word. Ethan, on the other hand, put two and two together and watched the pair with a perceptive smirk. They all missed the pause of Trent's pencil and the vindictive scribbling as he drew a gory end for the Red Ranger.

After class, Ethan waited as Kira removed the shirt and handed it to Conner with obvious embarrassment. "Does someone want to clue me in?"

"What are you talking about?" Conner asked, putting the shirt in his backpack and avoiding Ethan's eyes.

"What happened last night to keep you both out until the wee hours of the morning?"

"Nothing," Kira and Conner denied in unison, looking even guiltier.

"Right, nothing happened. Please, I know you guys and I can tell when you're lying. I mean, Kira, you were wearing Conner's shirt."

"We just talked, Ethan. That's all," Kira said in a steady voice.

Ethan looked at Conner who agreed with her assessment. "It was just talking, Ethan. Let it go."

That was the whole story as far as Conner and Kira were concerned. They refused to waver from their tale so Ethan finally had to let the subject drop even if his suspicions still remained.

But something intangible had happened in those early morning hours, woven into the fabric of Conner and Kira's relationship. It reflected in odd ways, in the way Kira slept that night dreaming of Conner's safe arms, in the way Conner smelled a hint of Kira on his shirt and hung it up instead of tossing it in the laundry basket. It was another link, forged in the fire of passion and cooled by understanding, a link in the chain that connected the pair, a link that would someday allow them to revisit the magnetic attraction when their lives were a little simpler.


End file.
